A Promise of Slumber
by Kojakk
Summary: Meet Lucy Heartfilia, heiress to the Heartfilia Konzern, but otherwise a normal high school girl. Our young heiress' life is turned upside down, when her father agrees to house Gray Fullbuster, one of the heirs to the Fullbuster Fortune. Now living under the same roof, Lucy and Gray's relationship will definitely change, but to what? Friendship? Hate? Could it even be love?
1. Chapter 1 - A New House Guest

**Disclaimer: **_Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. _

**A/N:** Yo! Kojakk here! This will be my first ever story on here. I've read it over and over, I've gotten other people to read it, and I'm happy to say that it's very much completed. The only thing left to do is to put the story on the site. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, and I hope you guys will be too. Drop me a PM if you have any suggestions, I'll listen to everybody, promise. Constructive criticism is appreciated, no, it's encouraged. As an aspiring writer, I want to improve, so if anyone out there has any tips for me, I'll be more than happy to listen to them, and adjust to become a better writer.

Now enough about me, and more about the story. The story itself takes place in Japan (even though the whole thing is written in English), so there might be a few culture points here and there. I don't plan on using Japanese honorifics (san, kun, chan and the like), or actual Japanese words in the story (minna, ohayo, etc), since it sorta messes the flow for me, so be warned if that's the kind of thing you like! By the way, I'd like to know your view on long chapters. Yay or nay? I don't want my chapters to be so long, that people will find it tedious to read them. How many words do you think is right for a chapter?

And no, not every chapter will have a long author's note that the majority of people will skim through. On with the show!

* * *

**Chapter 1 - The New House Guest**

* * *

"I'm home!'' Lucy called out, as she entered the hall through the front door. Carefully, she took off her shoes, put them on the shoe rack and slipped on a more comfortable pair of slippers. Humming happily, she walked into her kitchen, expecting to see her mother preparing dinner. Instead, she was met with a middle aged man, sitting on a was smoking a pipe while reading a newspaper. The man was none other than her father, Jude Heartfilia, the owner of the Heartfilia Konzern.

''Welcome back, Lucy,'' her father greeted, having realized she had entered the room. Despite his greeting, his eyes never left the newspaper. After a moment of awkward silence, he put down the pipe, and then the newspaper, before getting up.

''How come you're not at work?'' Lucy asked, genuinely surprised. Her father was a very busy man, and often worked late into the night. To him, the company always came first, and family second. This was his motto. Lucy was used to this though. She had already endured having a mostly absent father for the last 17 years, after all.

''I took the day off,'' Jude replied, sternly. ''I'm here in the middle of the afternoon. Couldn't you have guessed?'' he added on, clearly unimpressed at his daughter's deductive skills.

''Right, of course you did,'' Lucy muttered, a bit embarrassed. Jude Heartfilia was human too, after all. Even a workaholic like him would need a day off once in a while. Not to mention the fact that he was the boss. If he wanted a day off, he'd damn well take one. Even so, he looked pretty well dressed for some guy who decided to skip work.

''Now, I have something I want to tell you, Lucy,'' her father said, approaching her. ''Do you know anything about the Fullbuster family?'' he asked.

''Of course,'' Lucy instantly replied, remembering the news article she had seen a couple of months back. ''The Fullbuster family are one of the most influential families in the country. The head of the family is Kaiser Fullbuster, an incredibly wealthy man, but he is getting on in years. Supposedly, there's a huge feud going on between family members on how his fortune is going to be divided,'' she finished.

''That's.. that's right,'' Jude replied, slightly taken back by his daughter's knowledge of current events. ''If that's the case, then I should have no problem telling you,'' Jude said, muttering a sigh of relief.

''What do you mean?'' asked Lucy.

''Your explanation was good, but not perfect,'' her father told her. ''You see, there is an heir to the Fullbuster fortune. Someone who will inherit the entire fortune. He's not a biological son of Fullbuster himself, rather an adopted son. Nevertheless, that adopted son will be staying with us for the next year. He's doing his last year of high school at your school,'' he explained.

''Can't the heir to the Fullbuster fortune get his own place?'' Lucy questioned, a bit irritated. Their house was pretty large, and there was a lot of spare rooms. This wouldn't have been the first time her father let someone stay in one of the spare rooms, and some of the guests were less than pleasant.

''He's only the heir to the Fullbuster fortune. Just wait a few years, that old man Fullbuster isn't getting any younger,'' her father said. ''By the way, he's upstairs now. So, are you okay with this arrangement?''

Lucy sighed. Then she nodded, and turned around to leave. This guy was already here after all, and even if Lucy voiced her discontent about it, she didn't think her father would pay any heed to her. He never did, after all. Not that it mattered, anyway. Lucy didn't plan on having much interaction with her new house guest. She was in her final year of high school, and had to focus on exams. She didn't have time to entertain.

''By the way, how come mom isn't cooking dinner? She always cooking at around this time,'' Lucy asked, confused.

''Cooking dinner? Are you insane? The heir to the Fullbuster fortune is staying with us, and this is his first day with the Heartfilia family. You didn't expect we'd greet him with a homemade meal, did you?'' Jude responded, raising an eyebrow. "No, that just won't do. Tonight we'll be going to Chez Pierre,'' he informed her.

Lucy replied with an unenthusiastic 'okay'. Chez Pierre was the fanciest restaurant in town, and one of the most expensive. It also happened to be her father's favourite restaurant. Not because the food was amazing, in fact, you could get food just as good elsewhere at more reasonable prices. No doubt, her father arranged an outing to Chez Pierre simply to impress.

Even so, Lucy enjoyed her occasional trips to Chez Pierre. Pondering what she was going to wear tonight, she exited the kitchen and began to climb the stairs up to her bedroom. The Heartfilia residence was big, but thankfully, Lucy's bedroom was only on the second floor, so the journey to her room wasn't very long. For some reason, her father insisted on having the master bedroom on the very top floor of the house. Her mother had disagreed, but eventually gave into her husband's ego.

After a short trek, Lucy had reached the door of her bedroom. Almost every room in the house had more or less the same kind of pattern on the door. Wanting to be unique, Lucy personally painted the bedroom door herself, and for good measure, put up a banner that read 'Lucy's Room'. She stood outside the door for a moment, admiring the handiwork she did on the door. After a moment had passed, she opened the door.

In the middle of her room, was a young man, stripped down to only his underwear. He was around her age, or just a little bit older.

''Hey, a little bit of privacy,'' the man said, without a hint of embarrassment in his voice. He talked as though having someone walking in on you while you were changing was a normal thing.

Lucy did not feel the same way. ''What in God's name are you doing?!'' she shouted, clearly taken back. There was no doubt that this was the 'house guest' that she would have to put up with.

''I'm changing, of course,'' the boy replied, pointing at some fancy clothes laid out on the bed. Lucy's bed. ''I don't really appreciate being disturbed by one of the maids though. Besides, aren't you a bit ... colourfully dressed for a maid?'' Gray said, approaching her, until there was only a little distance between them.

''I'm not a maid!'' Lucy snapped, defensively. ''And this is my bedroom. Get out!'' she demanded, as she tried to the push the young man out of her bedroom. Instead of being pushed around, he simply sidestepped her, causing the blonde to fall onto the floor.

''Do you need some help?'' the young man asked, politely, extending his hand to help her up.

''It was your fault that I ended up like this, anyways!'' Lucy said, glaring at the boy with a 'it's the least you could do' look. Seriously, who did he think he was? Coming into a girl's room and stripping. Are his table manners as bad as his behavior? Sighing, she took his hand.

''My name is Gray by the way. Gray Fullbuster,'' he introduced himself, as he helped her up. ''Now, what's with all this talk about telling me to leave. And what do you mean by your room?'' he asked.

''I mean what I said,'' Lucy replied, irritated. ''This is my room. Look around you. There's pictures of me by the mirror. My textbooks are on the desk, and they all have my name on it. How on Earth did you think this was a guest room?'' she asked, picking up a Japanese history book that had her name written on the front. Like most teenager girls, her name was uniquely decorated with glitter and many other kinds of things.

''Huh,'' Gray simply muttered. ''Well, that's news to me. Uncle Jude just said that my room would be the on the second floor, and when I saw that this room was the most ... different, I just assumed he had prepared it for me,'' he explained. Not a very convincing explanation.

Great, so he's just some pampered rich kid, Lucy thought.

''Not to mention the fact that my name is actually on the door. I know you're the all important heir to the Fullbuster fortune and all, and you're not completely to blame since my father probably wasn't clear about where your room was, but you shouldn't expect special treatment here,'' she told him.

''Lucy's room, eh?'' Gray said, noticing the banner on the front of the door. ''So you must be Lucy? Not a maid? You have your own room after all,'' he continued, completely ignoring Lucy's earlier statement.

''No, I'm not a maid! I'm Lucy Heartfilia, Jude Heartfilia's daughter! And you're just a pervert,'' she retorted.

''That's too bad,'' Gray smirked, choosing to ignore Lucy's pervert comment. ''If you were a maid, I would have asked you to come work for me. You still can, if you want. I'd treat you well. Don't let the fact that you're Jude Heartfilia's daughter stop you,'' he continued, causing Lucy to turn bright red in embarrassment. Chuckling, he strutted over to the bed, picked up his clothes and began to walk away. He stopped, right before he reached the door.

''Hey, Lucy,'' Gray said, turning back to look at her. ''Put on something nice tonight, okay? For me?'' he winked, as he exited the room. Lucy simply glared at him with a look that could kill, as he walked out of the room, and eventually out of sight.

* * *

The car ride to Chez Pierre was a short one, but for Lucy, it felt like an eternity. Her father, Jude Heartfilia had insisted on driving himself, and decided to take his Audi A8. Not an immensely flashy car, but still fashionable enough for someone like Jude Heartfilia. The car was a sedan, so Layla, Lucy's mother sat in the passenger seat, while Jude himself drove. Gray and Lucy both sat in the back, but both of them sat at the far end of their respective sides, so there was a little bit of distance between them.

The entire car journey consisted of Jude talking, mostly bragging, to Gray about his achievements. Gray didn't seem to listening though, simply looking outside the window, assessing his surroundings. Lucy concluded that Gray had lived abroad, due to the way he reacted when her father asked him if he had ever been in a 'maid cafe'. After hearing a rather brief, but still informative description of what a maid cafe was, Gray turned to look at Lucy for a second, but quickly turned back, slightly red face, when she realized he was staring at her.

There was nothing but silence for the rest of the journey.

''Gray, this is the first time we've had time to talk since you came back to Japan! How do you like it here?'' Jude asked, as the last of their plates began to be collected by the waiter. As the waiter began to leave with the last plate, Jude asked him for the check.

''I've been here many times with Grandfather on business,'' Gray informed him. ''But I've never really lived here, so yes, there is a bit of culture shock,'' he stated, remembering the 'maid cafe' incident that had occurred just over an hour ago earlier in the car.

''Grandfather?'' Lucy suddenly piped up. ''I thought Kaiser Fullbuster was your stepfather?'' she asked. Her father shot her a 'don't be so rude' look, but Lucy ignored him. There was no way he would yell at her, and cause a big scene in public.

''He is my legal guardian,'' Gray answered her. ''But he tells me to call him Grandfather. After all, he is much older than me, and already has children, all who are in their mid thirties,''

''Ah, well that makes sense,'' Jude nodded approvingly. ''Your grandfather is a close friend of mine, and gave me lots of advice when I was only starting out. I'm very grateful to him, you know,'' he mused.

''Definitely, Uncle Jude. Grandfather always lights up when he mentions your name. He says that he knew you were going to be successful,'' Gray said. Jude's face began to glow as Gray told him about how much his grandfather respected him.

''Is this some sort of flattery competition?'' Lucy whispered to her mother, who had been observing the conversation carefully, but not really contributing to it. The only time she spoke was when Jude asked her something like ''Isn't that right, honey?'' or ''Remember that time...?'' to which Layla would reply with a sufficient ''Yes dear,''

Layla giggled. ''Well, your father loves having his ego stroked more than anything else. You should know that,'' she whispered back, loud enough for Lucy to hear it, but not Jude.

''Are all guys like this?'' Lucy asked her, a bit louder, but Jude and Gray were too busy with their conversation to hear her.

''I think all humans are like this,'' Layla told her. ''Everyone wants to be appreciated. That's why they get so happy when you praise them. Isn't that the case with you too?'' she said, smiling. This is one of the things that Lucy loved most about her mother. She never beat around the bush, never telling her what she wanted to hear, but rather what she _needed _to hear.

Before Lucy could reply, Gray and Jude had already caught on that the mother and daughter were having a conversation behind their backs. ''What are you two talking about?'' Jude asked, picking up his glass of wine and casually sipping it.

''Just girl stuff. Nothing you need to worry about,'' Layla responded, pleasantly. ''Also, you shouldn't be drinking so much, you're suppose to be driving remember?'' she added on, as she took the glass away from him.

As Jude began to dish out excuses about how a little bit of wine won't hurt, the waiter returned to the table, with the check. He placed it in front of Jude and respectfully said ''Your check, sir,'' as waiters often do. Jude smirked a little bit, and took up the piece to paper to check the bill. After seeing the numbers, he simply slid his right hand into his breast pocket and took out a single note, worth a sizable amount of money. Much more than the meal should have cost.

Carefully, he handed it to the waiter. ''You can keep the change,'' Jude instructed him, much to the waiter's delight. The waiter bowed, and thanked him, before scurrying away.

''Wasn't that quite the tip?'' Gray said, as the four of them began to stand up. It wasn't unusual that Gray would question Jude for letting the waiter 'keep the change', but it was a habit that he had developed over the years. Lucy had already gotten used to it, and didn't really care anymore.

''It's fine. He served us well,'' Jude simply replied. Lucy didn't really think this was a good reason to be tipping THAT much. All he did was take our order, and then bring us what we wanted, Lucy thought.

Jude turned to his daughter, with an ice cold glare, as if he could read Lucy's mind. ''I personally asked the headmaster of your school to transfer Gray here to your class,'' he informed her.

''Wait, you personally asked the headmaster to transfer Gray to my class?'' Lucy asked, shocked. ''Isn't that a bit weird and a bit unfair? The class selection is random, so it isn't right if Gray is suddenly allowed into my class just because you _want _him too. I mean, if it worked like that, I'd be in Levy's class!'' she complained.

''It's fine, Lucy,'' Layla smiled. ''Besides, Gray isn't just going to a brand new high school. He's in a whole new country, with whole new surroundings. He isn't even living with familiar people. If he's in your class, then he'll at least know one person, right?''

''It's not like he can't speak the language! His Japanese is perfect, and he's good looking too, so I don't think the girls would ignore...''

''Oh, you think so?'' Gray interjected, smirking. Lucy cursed herself. She had forgot Gray was there, and let something slip out.

''Yeah,'' she admitted. ''I think your Japanese is perfect. You'll have no problem communicating with your brand new classmates,'' she said, hoping to turn the situation around.

''No, not that. I meant the part where you said I was a handsome, desirable, good looking, stylish devil,'' Gray corrected her, using a strange number of adjectives to prove his point.

''I never said that! I only said you were handsome!'' she shouted, her voice completely raised. This wasn't a good thing, as heads began to turn from other tables. Even the waiter, who Jude had previously tipped so generously was giving them a perplexed look.

Lucy wasn't one to care too much about public appearances, and neither was Layla, and Gray seemed to be enjoying himself too much to care. But Jude was the kind of man who believed public appearances was everything. Gray simply smirked, the look on his face even smugger than before. He looked as though he was going to say something, but decided not to, as he didn't want to irritate Lucy anymore. Who knows what this girl would do when she's really angry?

''Gray is going to be in your class and that's final,'' Jude said, calmly, but on the inside, it was clear that he was seething with rage at being publicly embarrassed. He didn't want to raise his voice and make a bad situation even worse though. Lucy knew she was going to get a serious tongue lashing when they got home.

''Don't be too hard on her,'' Gray said, patting Lucy on the head. ''I have the perfect punishment. It's much more effective than getting out the belt, Uncle Jude,'' he said, grinning at her.

_The belt? This isn't olden times, you jerk!  
_

''Instead,'' Gray began. ''She should graciously accept the fact that she and I will be classmates_. _But even if we're in the same class, she could still not talk to me. Even worse, she could completely ignore me and then I might end up looking like a creep, if I try to approach her without good reason,'' he explained.

_You're already a creep, sneaking into a girl's room and stripping!_

''That's why I think Lucy should have to be my guide around the school. She should be with me every single hour of the school day, telling me where things are, where my classroom is, and the like,'' he proposed.

''That is a good idea,'' Jude said, approvingly. ''Not that I would have hit her anyway, Gray! I hope you don't have the wrong idea about me,'' he said, slightly worried that the young man had a distorted image of him.

''No disagreements here. And I don't think Lucy will mind. Isn't that right, dear?'' Layla said, turning to her daughter, who simply sighed. Lucy then turned to face Gray and walked up to him.

Gray wasn't the biggest guy around, being only slightly above average in height. Even so, he looked incredibly intimidating to Lucy and it wasn't until she stood right in front of him, that she realized how much of a stranger he was to her. They weren't close at all, and after what he had put her through, Lucy didn't even consider Gray to be her friend.

Despite this, he had been the first boy, bar her father, to have been in her room, not to mention the fact that Gray had heard Lucy admit that she found him to be 'handsome', or whatever distorted version of it Gray would surely be telling his friends back in America, or whatever country he had been living in.

''Listen,'' Lucy began, angrily, taking out her finger and poking Gray in the chest. ''I'll agree to be your guide, but ONLY as long as you don't do anything creepy. I have friends, you know, and if you strip in front of them or something like that ... I'd be really ... just... just don't do it, okay?!'' she gapsed, almost pleadingly.

''I can agree to that,'' Gray smirked.


	2. Chapter 2 - Old Faces, New Friends

**A/N:** Quite a long chapter, but stick through with it! I'm pretty happy with how this one turned out. Thanks to everyone who favourited, reviewed and alerted. It means a lot to me. Now, show start!

* * *

**Chapter 2 - Old Faces, New Friends**

* * *

''I'm going now!'' Lucy chirped happily, as she prepared to put on her shoes.

Then she turned around to see the face of Gray Fullbuster staring attentively back at her. Lucy's mood suddenly dipped, as she remembered that she was forced to practically babysit the young heir until he was comfortable with his new surroundings. Grumbling something under her breath, she handed Gray a piece of paper. School had only started last week, but Lucy and Gray were already in their final year of high school. People had already formed their own social groups, but studying for exams would have priority over socializing for most students.

But Lucy didn't think Gray would have a hard time fitting in. After all, he was the heir to one of the most influential families in the country. All transfer students normally had to say a line or two about themselves, and if he mentioned the fact that he was heir to the Fullbuster Fortune, people would be lining up to try and befriend him. Lucy knew that all too well, considering who her own parents were. Even when she met people who clearly had shady intentions, she was never unfriendly, but she knew who her real friends were.

''Is saying goodbye to your parents before leaving a Japanese or a Heartfilia thing?'' Gray questioned, as he inspected the piece of paper that Lucy had given him. After reading the contents of it, he slipped it into his breast pocket.

''It's just good manners to say goodbye before leaving,'' Lucy informed him. ''And straighten up your tie... and put on your blazer properly! I don't want people to think I'm friends with with some sort of delinquent,'' Lucy scolded, attempting to adjust his school uniform.

''My old school never had a dress code. The only time I had to wear a tie was when I went with Grandfather to business meetings,'' he replied. ''Besides, this uniform is incredibly uncomfortable,''

''It doesn't really matter whether it's uncomfortable or not. Now, hurry up or else we're going to miss the train!'' Lucy said, as she grabbed Gray by the hand and led him out of the house. There was an anxious look on the young man's face.

''Train? We're not driving us to school?'' Gray asked, as Lucy dragged him out of the Heartfilia Estate and out onto the road.

''I don't drive. I take the train everyday. It's fine really, lots of my schoolmates take the same train, and workers too,'' Lucy informed him. ''You might even make some friends,'' Lucy muttered hopefully under her breath, but Gray didn't seem to hear her. He was too preoccupied with the thought of having to take public transportation.

The Heartfilia Estate was incredible large, around the size of a small village. In fact, some people who lived near the Estate even called it the 'Heartfilia Village' rather than the Heartfilia Estate. Outside of the Estate however, was a more rural area. There were no sidewalks, a fact that Gray pointed out to Lucy several times as they walked to the train station. It took about twenty minutes for the pair to reach the station, a trip that could have been shortened had Lucy and Gray didn't stop to argue every couple of minutes.

''So, these are all my fellow classmates,'' Gray mused, as he looked around at the people in the crowded station. Several of them wore the same uniform as he did, while some sported uniforms from other schools. There were also several people commuting to work.

''Maybe you should try talking to some of them?'' Lucy suggested, as she edged just slightly away from him. ''And don't stand so close to me. I don't want people to get the wrong idea, you know?'' she said.

''Why would I want to talk with other people, when we're having the greatest conversation right here, Lucy?'' Gray remarked, as he moved himself closer to Lucy, until there was no distance between them. As he positioned his arm to put his hand around her waist, the two were suddenly thrust apart by someone who had wedged themselves right in between Gray and Lucy.

''Morning, Lulu!'' the person greeted cheerily, leaning in to give Lucy a small hug, completely ignoring Gray who was dumbfounded by the girl who had just pushed him aside.

''Levy!'' Lucy responded, with equal enthusiasm, hugging her classmate back.

Gray on the other hand simply looked on at the girl. From the school uniform she was wearing, he could tell that she was probably a classmate of his. This would have made her around 17 or 18, but she looked half that age. Mostly due to her small stature, and childlike features. She almost reminded Gray of the little sister that he never had. She had blue hair, the top was cut short, while the bottom was grown longer. She kept her hair tied up with a colourful bandana that, in Gray's opinion, looked pretty cute.

''Hey, Lucy,'' Levy suddenly whispered to her friend. ''That guy over there is just staring at you, like he knows you. I think you have a stalker on your hands,'' she said, half jokingly.

''That's just Gray,'' Lucy sighed, as she remembered that she was practically going to be his babysitter for the day. ''He's an ... acquaintance of my family. He just transferred into our school, so I'm showing him around the school and the city,''

''A mysterious transfer student?!'' Levy suddenly piped up. ''Does he have any magical powers? Maybe he drives a mecha?'' Levy mumbled excitedly, unaware that Gray was able to hear every word she was saying.

''Sorry to say this,'' Gray said, smoothly as he approached the two girls. ''But I don't have any super powers, or anything like that. I am very pleased to meet you though,'' he said, as he leaned in to get a better look at Levy.

''No magical powers? Bah, you're quite boring then!'' Levy muttered, as she pushed him away. ''Lulu, the train is here! Let's go, let's go!'' she said, as she took Lucy's hand and lead her into the train, leaving Gray behind in the station.

Sighing, and muttering something under his breath, Gray entered the long line to enter the train. After a short wait, Gray had finally gotten in, but there wasn't a single seat available. It was almost impossible to stand, as it seemed like every nook and cranny of the train was filled. Realizing he had almost no chance of finding Lucy or Levy in such a huge crowd, Gray dejectedly slunk over to a side of the train, where there was a little bit of space, and quietly stood there, hoping that a large number of people would get off at the next stop, so he could find his way.

Just a couple of feet away, Lucy and Levy had fortunately managed to secure two seats for themselves. Lucy warily looked around for any sign of her new house guest, while Levy was less concerned with Gray's absence. As Lucy was about to get up from her seat to look for Gray, she heard a familiar voice call out to her and Levy.

''Lucy? Levy?'' the feminine voice called. Lucy and Levy realized the owner of the voice immediately, and turned to face the direction it was coming from.

''Mira?'' Levy said excitedly. ''It's been too long!'' she added, as she got up to hug the older girl.

Mirajane was a good friend of both Lucy and Levy, and the previous president of the Literature Club, of which both Lucy and Levy were members. Mirajane had taken a great interest in Lucy's potential as a writer, and in Levy's fondness for books, and as a result, she had taken them under her wing, and the three girls had formed a sister like relationship. Levy and Lucy both knew that Mirajane was someone that they could trust.

''I haven't seen you two since my graduation!'' Mirajane said, in a soft tone that only she could pull off. ''How's the Literature Club doing?''

''It's not doing too bad. The Literature Club at our school wasn't so popular to begin with, but your younger sister really is a great president. Without her, we'd probably be defunct right now,'' Lucy admitted. ''And she's only a second year. She's just as amazing as you were,''

''Ah, I remember now!,'' Mirajane gasped. ''I forgot that Lisanna had become president! Is she doing well also?''

The two younger girls scratched their heads in confusion. ''Isn't Lisanna your younger sister, Mira?'' Lucy asked, affectionately calling her Mira. ''Wouldn't you know better than us? Lisanna is on the student council as well, so she really has to balance the work,''

''Oh, I haven't seen you two at all during the holidays, so I haven't gotten the chance to tell you yet,'' Mirajane said, as she extended her left hand for Lucy and Levy to inspect. ''Look at this,''

''Whoa, that's a pretty big rock,'' a male voice suddenly said, causing the three girls to turn around. It was Gray, having someone reached them, despite the large amount of people in the train.

''Where were you?!'' Lucy suddenly exclaimed. ''I was worried sick! If you had gotten lost or something, I'd be the one to get in trouble!''

''So, you were just worried about me because you didn't want to be scolded by your parents? That's not real worry, Lucy,'' Gray teased. ''Besides, it didn't look like you were breaking your back, looking for me. You were talking to your friends,''

''My, my,'' Mirajane giggled. ''Who's this, Lucy? Your boyfriend?'' she said, causing Lucy to turn bright red. Levy also began to giggle.

''No, no, you've got it wrong!'' Lucy said, using her hands to metaphorically wave away the accusations. ''This is just a family friend. He recently moved to Japan, and I'm just showing him around. He's a bit of a bother, really,'' Lucy huffed in annoyance.

''Oh, I see. That's too bad,'' Mirajane replied, a hint of disappointment in her voice. ''But it's not like he's your relative or anything! You should snap him up before someone else does! Like me,'' she winked.

''Is that really something an engaged woman should be saying?'' Levy whispered to Lucy under her breath. ''Anyway, let's forget about Lulu's love life for a moment! Who's the lucky man?'' she asked, trying to change the subject.

''You guys know him,'' Mirajane stated. ''He's currently a first year in college, and also graduated last year like me. So, was that a good enough hint?''

''Is it Freed?!'' Levy guessed. ''How about Loke?'' she guessed again, after Mirajane shook her head at Levy's previous assumption.

''Loke is still in his senior year. He hasn't graduated yet,'' Lucy corrected her best friend. ''Is it Max or Warren?'' she asked, putting in her own guesses, but Mirajane shook her head again.

''We didn't know many third years last year, Mira. The only one left is Zancrow, and I really don't think he's the kind of guy to get down on one knee,'' Levy told her.

''I don't think Mira would say yes, even if Zancrow did do something like that,'' Lucy commented, earning her a 'is this Zancrow guy really that bad?' look from Gray. Lucy simply replied with a nod.

''Ah! This is my stop!'' Mirajane suddenly gasped, as the four of them realized that the train was coming to a halt. ''My fiancee's family own a bar downtown. You three should come by, and you can meet him for yourself,'' Mirajane suggested, as she took out a piece of paper, and wrote the address on it. She handed it to Levy, who had opened her mouth to reply, perhaps to even reject Mirajane's request, but she closed it again and waved goodbye, as Mirajane exited the train.

Somehow, Gray didn't think that Mirajane was the kind of woman you could just say 'no' to.

* * *

**Location: Sensoyami High School, Classroom 3-C**

''Hello! My name is Gray Fullbuster. I was originally born in Japan, but I moved to America when I was young,'' he introduced himself to his homeroom classmates.

After the last bit of his sentence about living abroad, some of bored students ears began to perk up. A majority of the students had already taken an immediate interest in Gray, when he walked into the classroom, but a minority of them just turned their heads away, apathetically. But many began to seem interested, after Gray introduced himself in fluent English that shocked even Lucy.

When the teacher asked the class if they had any questions for Gray, over two thirds of the class shot their hands up. Lucy was not one of them. She knew Gray just a little bit _too _well. Lucy was too busy thinking about Mirajane, someone she considered to be like family. She worried about what kind of person her fiancee would be. Mirajane is a recent high school graduate, after all, so she didn't even have a stable income yet.

Even so, when Mirajane revealed the news of her engagement to Lucy, she didn't seem amazingly taken back, despite how shocked she pretended to look. Mirajane was always one to attract a lot of male attention, and she was very well known around the school. Like Lucy, she was rarely unfriendly. Last year, Mirajane was made president of the Literature Club, and for the first few weeks after her appointment, the Literature Club had a huge surge in members, mostly male.

Naturally, many of them weren't even remotely interested in literature, and had only joined because Mirajane was made the president, but the new president was unwilling to kick the members, who really didn't belong in the club, and as a result, Lucy was the one that had to drive them out. She ended up earning the nickname of 'Bodyguard' for a few days, but that eventually died out. As a variety of thoughts entered and left her, Lucy decided to begin to pay attention to the question and answer session Gray was having.

''Gray, I struggle with English class at lot in school!'' a male student, known to people only as Joe suddenly admitted. ''Since you've lived abroad in an English speaking country for so long, I would really appreciate it if you agreed to tutor me!'' he said, pleadingly. He even added in a bow for good measure, but ended up smacking his head off his desk and coming off as a fool.

''Yeah, I'll tutor you if you want,'' Gray said, as cool as possible. ''Tell me when you have time. I don't really know my way around here yet, so I'd be happy to teach you a few phrases during lunch,'' he told Joe, causing the man to cry tears of joy.

''Gray, do you like basketball?'' someone said, raising their hand. It was the hand of Suguro Fujiwara, who was recently appointed as captain of the basketball team. ''I was just made captain after our previous captain graduated, and we could always use new players. You're relatively tall, and look like you could be of some use,''

''I was on the basketball team back in America, and we won a few trophies. But that's because the school I attended was big when it came to sports. I'm not really that great at basketball,'' Gray replied. It was the first time Lucy heard Gray say something modest. The big Suguro Fujiwara simply stated that it was fine, and instructed Gray to see him after school.

Many questions later, there were still many hands left in the air, but none of them were boys. Gray had already been asked to join a few sport clubs, and asked about what kind of things he liked, but there was one question that was left unasked, and as long as nobody asked it, Lucy knew that this question and answer session wouldn't end. Even the teacher wanted someone to ask the question. She looked slightly distressed, as class was suppose to have begun 5 minutes ago. She looked hopefully, as she pointed at a girl sitting in the front row.

''Do you have a girlfriend?'' the girl in the front asked. Lucy recognized her immediately. Her name was Juvia Lockser. Like Mirajane, she was also very popular with the males, but had remained single since middle school. Lucy quite liked her, as they were both similar, both coming from prestigious families. They didn't often talk though, but the little interaction they had was normally pleasant.

''Girlfriend?'' Gray asked, a bit taken aback by the question, but not embarrassed. Taking a second to contemplate the question, he regained his cool composure. ''Yeah, I do,'' he admitted. A good bit of the girls seemed disappointed, and almost all of the boys didn't really care. Lucy, on the other hand, felt like she had bee hit in the face with a brick.

''Just kidding,'' Gray suddenly chuckled, looking at Juvia, the person who had asked him the question. ''The truth is, I had one back in America. Her name was Kana, but we broke up when I left for Japan,'' he explained, looking only slightly upset.

''What an emotionally scarring story!'' Juvia cried. ''That sounds like something out of a book or manga!''

Gray chuckled again. ''No, it was quite unusual, to be honest. It wasn't your typical love story. The only reason I met her, was because my basketball coach was her father,'' he said. ''But yeah, I'm single,'' he said, summing up the story.

Juvia was about to open her mouth to speak again, but she was suddenly stopped by the teacher, who looked even more worried than before. It seemed like her study schedule for the day was completely ruined, by possibly the longest transfer student introduction the school had ever seen. Instead, Gray told Juvia that they would talk later, as he took his new desk, which was ironically, right in front of Lucy's.

''So, come to the court tomorrow before class starts. I'll introduce you to the rest of the team,'' Suguro Fujiwara said to Gray, after classes had ended. Gray nodded, as Fujiwara took his leave.

''So Gray...'' Juvia muttered, as she approached Gray. She had been monitoring Gray and Fujiwara's conversation, but decided not to join in, until after Fujiwara had left. Lucy was also listening intently, and she had the best position, as her seat was right behind Gray's. She was pretending to do some work, while eavesdropping.

''Oh, Juvia right?'' Gray said. ''What was it you wanted to say before the teacher interrupted?''

''You said that you recently moved to Japan, correct? If you need any help, you could always ask me,'' she said, shyly, which was unusual as Lucy knew that Juvia wasn't that kind of person. A bit uncaring yes, but not shy.

''That's a great offer,'' Gray smiled. ''But you see, I already have a guide. It's this girl here, Lucy Heartfilia,'' he informed her, as he pointed at Lucy, who dug her head deep into her textbook and began to write rapidly, as if nothing was happening.

''Is that so?'' Juvia said, sounding incredibly disappointed, but she suddenly lit up again. ''But I still want to contribute!'' she said, desperately.

''Contribute? I have no idea what you mean by that?'' Gray said, raising an eyebrow.

''I'm not doubting Lucy's abilities as a guide or anything, but I want to help Gray too! It's my motto to do one good deed a day!'' Juvia exclaimed. Lucy could tell it was a blatant lie. ''My father owns a beach house in Kyoto, and I'm planning a small gathering for the summer. I'd be happy if you came along. Lucy could come along too, of course,'' Juvia said, turning to Lucy, feigning a smile, which made her feel sort of uneasy.

Gray thought for a moment. ''That actually sounds pretty good, Juvia! We'll take you up on your offer,'' Gray thanked her, also accepting on Lucy's behalf. Suddenly he turned to Lucy. ''Hey, shouldn't we go meet Levy now? Aren't we something to be going to see your old friend?''

''That's right!'' Lucy remembered, as she looked at her watch. ''We have to go see Mirajane. Sorry, Juvia, but we'll have to go now,'' Lucy apologized, as she packed up her things and stormed out of the room, followed by Gray, leaving Juvia the last person in classroom 3-C.

Juvia looked out the window. She could see Lucy and Gray joining up with Levy by the gates, and together, the three of them began to walk at a casual pace. She sighed, as she thought about Lucy and Levy. Were they threats to her? Lucy was always nice to her, and Levy definitely wasn't a bad person. She knew that much, at least. As Juvia pondered, she heard a knock on the door.

She turned around to see two people looking back at her. A man and a woman, who was around her age. The man was tall, muscular, and probably middle age. Probably the girl's father. He had orange shoulder length hair, that he kept slicked back. The young woman was quite tall and slim. Her hair was a dark brown colour, that went down to her mid-back. They were both foreigners.

''Yo!'' the older man suddenly greeted. ''Is this classroom 3C? My daughter was suppose to be in this class, but somehow our flight was held up!'' he joked, as he began to laugh. His laugh could only be compared to thunder.

''The flight wasn't held up, you damn geezer!'' the woman scolded. ''It's because you wanted to take that detour at that maid cafe. Have a little bit of respect for yourself, you lecherous old man!''

''Don't worry about it, Kana,'' the man suddenly said. From their conversation, Juvia could tell they were probably father and daughter. Even though they sounded like they were arguing, they were undeniably close. He turned to look at Juvia.

''Could you tell us where the headmaster's office is?'' he asked, politely. ''My name is Gildarts, the new basketball coach. And this is my daughter, Kana. She'll be in this class, 3-C,'' he told her. Juvia was about to open her mouth and tell the pair the way to the headmaster's office, but she suddenly remembered Gray's answer to her question earlier in the day.

''Kana, is it?''

* * *

**A/N: **Dang! I hadn't planned on introducing Kana (or Cana, if you want) and Gildarts (or Gildartz, if it's your thing...) just yet, but ending the chapter with Gray and Lucy just ditching Juvia just seemed ... not right to me. So, what did you guys think? Drop a review and let me know! Til next time!


End file.
